Maps, geography & the economic slump

Maps are back! Maybe there was a time when mapping was dull but not anymore. With innovations such as GIS software and even mapping software on mobile phones, all sorts of people can do cool things with maps. A notable example is the The New York Times, which seems to have found some great cartographers. In a recent article, the NYT draws attention to some aspects of the geography of the economic slump in the US. There are, of course, more geographic dimensions to the slump and the supposed recovery: as the NYT discusses elsewhere, US President Obama’s stimulus package raises lots of questions about where and how states will spend their money.